If I Had Another Half
by omerici8
Summary: What if Percy Jackson wasn't the only child of Poseidon? What if he had a twin sister. rated T just cuz
1. Chapter 1

**Hi everybody, I hope you enjoy my story, please rate and review (NO FLAMES!)**

**I do not own PJO or HOO **

_Flashback :_

"_Kids stop running around, Mommy can't make dinner if she's concentrating on you instead of the pasta. Go watch a movie" my mom says._

"_Okay" I say and I wobble over to the couch on my plump toddler legs. "What do you want to watch?" I say in a baby voice to the girl sitting next to me. She looks about my age (which is about three) and she has short, wavy , black hair and green eyes (also like me)._

"_Let's watch the Wiggles" she says happily. "wiggles, wiggles, wiggles!" we both chant._

"_Alrighty then, Wiggles it is" mom says and puts the tape in the VCR. When the "mash potatoes" song comes on, the girl sitting next to me gets up from the couch and starts dancing along with the video. I join along and dance with her while my mom is laughing in the kitchen. _

_I look at this girl and smile and have a strange feeling deep down that nothing could ever separate us from one another._

_Flashback over._

"Percy? Perrrcccyyy? Earth to Percy? PERSEUS JACKSON!" Annabeth yells.

"What? Oh sorry" I respond.

"You okay?"

"Fine, never better."

Ever since the war with Gaea, all seven of the kids of the prophecy have been acting strange but even I can admit that I've been a little more delusional and paranoid that usual. I keep having these strange flashbacks from when I was a little kid and it's starting to seriously creep me out.

"Were you even listening to what I was saying? I was talking about how we are conjoining Camp Half Blood with Camp Jupiter. Isn't that great?!" Annabeth exclaims.

"Yeah sure, look Annabeth I don't really feel too well, I think I want to go back to my cabin and rest. Is that okay?"

"Alright," Annabeth responds a little wearily "I'll see you in the morning then."

I turn and take off running, knowing that I'm not going anywhere near my cabin, but just somewhere to get away from people. I find my "secret spot" on the lake at camp. It's sandy area off to the right side of the lake. It sits between a few large, moss covered boulders and an old willow tree stands behind it. I go there all the time and no one ever finds me.

I sit down in my hiding place and look across the lake. The sun is just starting to set and I can see the effect it has on the water, its reflection turning the lake from yellow, to a blood orange, to a pinkish red and finally just dark.

I think about returning to my cabin, then I regret it. It's at moments like these where I dwell upon how sad it is to be an only child at home and at my cabin. Everyone else has at least one sibling to be with in their cabin, someone they can talk to.

After about half an hour more I decide to finally return to my cabin, this time sadder than ever.

**Soooooo… what did you think? I know it's pretty short with barely any characters or even a slight reference to the title but I promise that the next chapter will make more sense. This is just the precursor to the story **J

**RATE AND REVIEW PLEASE! (again no flames)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey everyone. I'm really sorry for the wait, I started school about a month ago (FRESHMANNN) and got a mass overload of tests and assignments. So here's chapter 2, ENJOY!**

**No flames please.**

**I do not own PJO or HoO. **

_Flashback :_

"_Kids stop running around, Mommy can't make dinner if she's concentrating on you instead of the pasta. Go watch a movie" demands a woman in her late twenties/ early thirties._

"_Okay" a little boy says. "What do you want to watch?" He giggles in a baby voice. He looks about my age (which is about three) and has short, messy, black hair and green eyes (also like me)._

"_Let's watch the Wiggles" I say happily. "wiggles, wiggles, wiggles!" we both chant._

"_Alrighty then, Wiggles it is" the woman says and puts the tape in the VCR. When the "mash potatoes" song comes on, I jump up from the couch and start dancing along with the video. The boy joins along while the mysterious lady is laughing in the kitchen. _

_I look at this boy and smile and have a strange feeling deep down that nothing could ever separate us from one another._

Flashback over:

My eyes slowly open. Just another morning under water, trapped in my father's palace. I sit up in my bed which is suspended from the glass ceiling by some sort of super-strong under water moss. My room itself is made entirely of glass, permitting me to see the animated sea all around me. Pastel colored coral in various sizes decorate the ocean floor while colorful sea creatures and friendly mer- people swim around.

My bed is in the center of my room surrounded by a dark brown dresser, mirror and sea green dressing shade to block me while I'm changing my clothes (what, you'd think I'd change out in the open?). Surrounding this is somewhat of an underwater garden. Soft green moss covers the floor and various sea flowers adorn the floor. Scattered in various places around the room are beautiful willow trees that add some coziness to the room. A trail of light gray rocks leads to an area hidden to everyone's eyes. Various willow trees and boulders surround a crystal blue lake that can turn into a hot spring in my command.

Being trapped under water is hard. My father Poseidon brought me down here to keep me safe. He says I'm much too dangerous and still need to work on controlling my powers. You'd think fourteen years of practice is enough but it never is. I haven't been above water since I was three; in fact, I rarely ever leave my room. So many people (and Cyclopes) wander around my father's palace. Plus there's Poseidon's devil of a wife and son. They sure enjoy making my life a living Hades.

I get up from bed and go to my dresser. I pick a simple, turquoise dress from a flowing cotton-like material that is twisted in a rope pattern in the back. I comb my hair and neatly braid it, occasionally weaving in a fresh sea flower. Finally I put on a long, silver heart necklace that I've had ever since I can remember.

I look out the glass walls to see many mer-men, mer-women and mer-children swimming around. It must be rush hour. A large tiger shark swims by and I wave.

"Good morning Reynold" I say to the tiger shark. He's been my close companion for some years now. He took me on my first trip around the bottom of the Pacific Ocean right off the coast of New Jersey.

"What a fine day it is, Marina" he replies and keeps swimming.

As I keep looking out the window I think of the memory I had just before I woke up. The boy I was thinking of looks so familiar and the woman does too. They look so familiar to the point when I think about them I instantly become happy. Something about them gives me a splendid feeling of home and family. As I look at the ocean I catch my reflection and the glass. For a second I seem to see an older version of the little boy and I finally notice why he looks familiar. He looks like me.

I faint tickling sensation builds up on the skin above my ribs and I look down to see my necklace shimmering. I place it in the palm of my hand and lift it up to see words starting to form.

" Through the places you'll go, and people you might see, of you I beg…"

**Hi guys I hope you like this chapter. I promise I will make another one a.s.a.p. **

**In regard to the quote, I made it up my self (with a little inspiration from Dr. Seuss). **

**By the way… this isn't the end of the quote…. **


	3. Chapter 3

**PLEASE READ: ****Thank you so much to everyone who read and commented my story. I already had 10 people add me to their "favorite story" and "story alert" lists only 2 hours after I posted! **

**I'll try my best to post a new chapter every weekend but it depends on how busy I am.**

**Follow and rate! Please comment on what you think or PM me with suggestions!**

**NO FLAMES! I do not own PJO or HoO. All rights reserved to Rick Riordan **

Percy:

Do you ever feel like something important is going to happen but you don't know what it is? It's like when you go to the mall and you have a really strong feeling that you're going to see someone you know, and you do. Well that's what I feel like right now. It just seems like something big is going to happen but I don't know what it is.

As I walk to the training arena my back pocket starts to tickle. I reach my hand into my pocket and pull out Riptide. I uncap it to try to see why it's tickling me, but I see nothing. There's that feeling again, the "big moment" one. I cap it back into a pen and keep walking.

I get to the training arena and find one of those newer dummies that don't look too beat up. The Hephaestus cabin programmed these to actually fight you, almost like a robot. I start lashing at it with my sword, practicing my dodges and parries as it swings at me. I guess my heart isn't exactly into it because after a few minutes it manages to knock me down.

I lay there on the sandy floor breathing hard and shielding my eyes from glare of the sun. I suddenly feel as if I'm on the verge of tears. I open my eyes after several minutes to see a figure of a girl standing above me.

"You okay?" Piper asks. She offers me a hand and pulls me up since I'm too defeated to do it myself. Surprisingly, she's pretty strong.

"I'm fine, I guess" I half-heartedly retort. She raises an eyebrow questionably and gives me a I-know-you're-lying look.

"Annabeth told me you were acting all weird and upset last night."

"And let me guess, she send you here to charmspeak me into feeling better and telling you what's on my mind?" I ask

"She's worried about you. We all are. You haven't been acting the same ever since we returned from Greece and we want to know what's up," Piper replies "But just between you and me, she did make me promise to use charmspeak if you didn't give in for a while."

I laugh and we both walk over to the coliseum looking seats on the outer rim of the arena. Camp Half-Blood is a slight replica of Greece after all. We take a seat in the first row and I place Riptide on the ledge in front of us.

"A few weeks ago I started getting these flashbacks. I think it's from when I was younger because I recognize myself but in every flashback there seems to be almost a mirror image of me but in the form of a girl."

"That's odd. I don't even know what to say about that. At least you know what you'd look like if you were a girl, I'm sure many seventeen year old guys have that on their minds." Piper says casually, making me smile. "Cool sword by the way. Mine only shows me images and occasionally my reflection. Not so useful in a battle." She picks up my sword and examines it.

"Apparently it's a cursed blade. It was made for Hercules by an umm… former acquaintance of mine."

"Your former acquaintance made Hercules a sword?" Piper asks.

"Well they used to date, if dating was even existent in Ancient Greece. She fell in love with him, made him a sword, and he never spoke to her ever again. She became a Hunter of Artemis after that. She well… She died a few years ago. Was killed by her own father."

"Well that's pleasant." Piper pauses for a minute still examining my sword "Who gave you Riptide?"

"My father did when I was twelve. It was sort of like a good-luck-I-hope-you-don't-die present when I found out I was a demi-god." I laughed thinking about the memory. It was only 5 years ago but it seemed so much longer.

"Are you sure it was your father?"

I give Piper a confused look "Yes, I mean indirectly he gave it to me but it was still meant for me to have it."

"Well I never expected your father to engrave a heart on the bottom of the hilt. That seems more like something my mother would do. See?" Piper says and hand me the sword. Sure enough there's a medium shaped heart on the bottom of the sword.

"Strange, I've never noticed it before today. I think I would have felt it by now, I mean I've had this sword for a good five years."

"I don't know. Gods can be weird." A conch horn blows in the distance signaling everyone that's it's time for lunch. "Well I should get to my cabin now, I really hope they don't leave without me" She says and runs off.

I slowly stand up and make my way to the dining pavilion. I still hold Riptide in my hand, unwilling to cap it. This is the third time today I've had "that" feeling and I'm having strange thoughts that it's connected to this sword. I run my finger over the heart and think about the girl in my flashback. Who is she?

The sword shimmers again and words start to form inside the heart. I frantically try to make out the words but with my dyslexia it's kind of hard. When the words are finally engraved I whisper them to myself.

"On the winding roads far and near, remember the ones that you hold dear…. Please don't forget me."

The beginning sounds nice but the end seems incomplete. Like something's missing.

And that's when it hits me. That girl I've been remembering isn't a mirror image, she's real. All these years I've secretly felt like something just isn't "there". I always used to think I was crazy but now I get that I'm wrong. I look again at the quote and a realization strikes me that is probably many years overdue.

This quote has another half; Just like me.

**So next week I'll try to post the next chapter. Like I said earlier please comment on what you think and PM me with suggestions. I'll try to take all of them into consideration. **

**If you like my story please tell other Percy Jackson fanatics!**

**Thank you for reading my stories, it really means a lot. **


	4. Chapter 4

**Greetings! So here's just the usual stuff: I don't PJO or HoO.**

**And I noticed last week that though a few people added me to their "story alert" lists, ****I got no reviews!PLEASE REVIEW! I NEED TO KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS! (NO FLAMES)**

Percy:

The awkward moment when you sit down for an emergency meeting with your six best friends and the camp director and have to tell them you're a twin.

"Are you serious Percy? I've known you for five years and you didn't tell me you had a twin. That's not such a minor detail!" Annabeth says angrily.

"I'm sorry I would have told you but I only figured it out myself about 20 minutes ago." I reply

"How do you just not know you have a twin?" Leo says "Don't you two have ESPN or something like that?"

"ESP Leo, ESP" Hazel sighs.

"I mean you can't just not know you have a twin! Can you?" Frank adds.

"Alright everyone let's keep this calm and rational," Chiron intervenes "Now Percy, tell us exactly what happened."

"For many years now I've been feeling like something just isn't right. As if something's missing and I can't figure out what it is. Two weeks ago I started getting these random visions of things I remember from when I was a toddler, but with an addition of a girl that always looks like me" I say quickly and catch my breath "Yesterday I was talking to Piper and she pointed out a carved out heart shape on my sword that I had never noticed before. After she left I swiped my finger against it and words appeared.."

"What did it say?" Jason asks. He's been so silent for the whole time that I barely even remembered that he's here. I take a deep breath and answer

"On the winding roads far and near, remember the ones that you hold dear... Please don't forget me" With that everyone was silent, trying to figure out what it meant so I decided to continue.

"I realized that my visions weren't visions, but flashbacks of when I was little. That strange feeling that something's missing really is in result of something, or should I say someone, missing. To complete sentence that was engraved on Riptide, I need to find my twin. I have to find my sister."

"This is strange. I would have thought that Poseidon would tell me if you had a twin sister. Well there really is nothing else we can do but ask." Chiron says and digs out a golden drachma from his fanny-pack and gives it to me. And yes, if you were a half horse you'd probably wear a fanny-pack too **available for purchase in 21st Centaur-y or through a purchased copy of Centaur Weekly**.

I walk over to an indoor fountain specially made for Iris Messaging, open a window, and throw in the coin. "Oh Fleecy, do me a solid. My father, Poseidon, please". I close my eyes and silently pray as an image shimmers into life.

Marina:

It's been three days since I saw the engraved words on my lucky necklace and I've locked myself in my room ever since. I can never figure out what the words mean, all I know is that they're somehow connected to my dreams. There are certain moments where I'm so close, but the answer escapes me before I can say it out loud.

Honestly, I'm so stressed out that I haven't eaten anything for the past three days and I'm starving. I finally decide to get up from one of the white, leather couch by one of the glass walls and walk through the door.

A long corridor stretches out of my room to a flight of swirly stairs that lead my father's throne room. "_All I need to do is cross through the hall and into the kitchen without being spotted" _I think.

But as I near the throne room I can hear my father speaking to someone who has a vaguely familiar hint to their voice. I'm guessing the person is speaking through an Iris Message since the quality of his voice sounds a little fuzzy. I listen closely to try and figure out who the person is and I hear that it's a boy who actually sounds about my age.

"But father please, I'm begging you. Just tell me yes or no." the boy says.

"Father," I murmur How many kids does Poseidon have?"

"Perseus this truly isn't the time to discuss." My father replies in a hushed whisper.

So the boy's name is Perseus. Wasn't that the son of Zeus who killed Medusa by looking into the reflection of his own shield? Well being the bored, nosy girl I am I keep listening.

"She mustn't know and neither should you" Poseidon adds.

Okay that's weird. I'm pretty sure that other than Poseidon's wife I'm the only "she" in this palace. And I really don't think that boy my age is talking about that monster of a women. I suddenly get an impulse to run out there and ask what's going on. So naturally, I do.

"She mustn't know what?" I ask, stepping into the room and look at my father.

I can see my father give me a grave look and shake his head but I also hear a gasp. I turn to look where the gasp came from, expecting it to be just a minor sea god or merman. But what I see instead makes me a thousand times more lightheaded than any merman or god.

Instead I see the boy from my flashbacks looking back at me with the same shocked expressions that I probably have.

And it's at that moment when I finally understand that this Perseus guy isn't just a minor god, he's my brother.

**Sooo… Did you like it? **

**Send me a private message with your ideas on what should happen next. Best idea gets used (I'll give credit to the writer of course!)**

**By the way, anyone get me centaur and fleecy joke? If you did, TELL ME! **__


	5. Chapter 5 part 1

**It's that time of week again! Chapter 5 1/2 coming right up (this is part one)!**

**PLEASE READ AND REVIEW**** No flames please **

**I do not own PJO or HoO.**

Marina:

I can't breathe. The sudden feeling of drowning overtakes me, which is funny since I live underwater. There are so many things to say yet nothing comes out. Luckily for me, my father speaks up first.

"I guess there's no use escaping it now, Marina and Percy we need to have a long discussion," he says "Alone."

Through the Iris Message I can see a few people get up and leave the room where they were apparently sitting for a meeting of some sort. I wonder who they are. After another awkward minute of silence Poseidon clears his throat.

"You two are twins, but that's probably stating the obvious. You two lived together with your mother until the age of three but then I decided to split you two apart. You were, and still are, the most powerful demi-gods on the planet and even at the age of three you started developing a scent," Poseidon stops and takes turns looking each of us in the eyes. At this point I am no longer looking at the boy in the IM, but at my father's intricately designed, pure gold throne.

"Keeping you two together is a great risk, far more dangerous than you can ever imagine. So for the past fourteen years Percy, you have been above water, and Marina you have been below it."

More silence followed afterwards. The floor shimmered magnificent shades of blues and greens, reflecting famous battles in ancient Greek history.

"Will we ever.. Umm.. See each other? As in person?" the boy, Percy, asks. I guess I should start calling him my brother now since we are twins.

"I don't think I have a choice do I," father sighs "In exactly three days from now Marina will move into Camp Half Blood so that she can get used to spending time on land. I will speak to Chiron, see you in three days."

The image fades as Father waves his trident through it. He stands from his throne and looks at me. "You should begin packing."

Percy (three days later):

"How are you?" Annabeth asks as she enters my cabin. She gives me a light kiss on the cheek and sits beside me on my bed. But right now even a kiss from my girlfriend won't make me feel any better. I'm freaking out.

"What if we hate each other?" I hopelessly reply, looking into her stormy gray eyes

"You won't" she says

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because it's in your blood Percy. Your fatal flaw clearly shows that you will do anything for your friends and family. And if I'm not mistaken, and I rarely ever am, a twin is considered family."

"Thanks" I answer and hug her. Annabeth always knows what to say at times like these. "We better get going, Chiron called a head-counselor meeting and it's about to start."

We both get up and head to the Big House. We walk side by side, with her left arm on my right shoulder and my right hand around her waist, but neither of us says a word. I think we're both nervous, though I don't know what Annabeth has to be nervous about. We get to the big house and Piper, Leo, Jason, Thalia, Reyna, Dakota, Connor, Travis, Katie, Clarisse, Chris and Will are all there, sitting on the porch.

Annabeth goes to sit by Piper, who is now her best friend and they start talking about gods know what. I just lean back on the porch steps and stare at the sky. The clouds look like perfect little cotton candy clumps that are just aimlessly floating around. The crystal clear sky looks so calm that I start to become envious.

I close my eyes, letting the warmth of the sun engulf me and think about Marina. That must be so hard, living under water for fourteen years, being isolated from the world like that. Don't get me wrong, the ocean is huge, but it must be terrible being stuck there for the majority of your life. Now that I think about it, she probably hasn't been in touch with humans for the past fourteen years. As if reading my thoughts Travis Stoll jokingly says

"Don't worry Percy, we won't scare you sister off." I give him a skeptical look

"I'll make sure Klepto here doesn't prank her until she's settled in." Katie Gardner, Travis's girlfriend and head counselor of the Demeter cabin adds. I try to smile at her but I can't. I'm too scared to. She gently places her hand on my shoulder. "Everything's going to be alright."

I heave a sigh and feel a slight tingling sensation where Riptide sits in my back pocket. That's when I know that she's finally here. Marina, my sister, my twin. I can see her again. And that's when I finally smile.

**PLEASE READ: **

**I hope you liked my story. Part 2 of this chapter will come out soon. Please review, no flames **

**HERE'S WHAT'S COMING IN THE NEXT FEW CHAPTERS: **

**Marina and Percy will see each other in person/ everyone's reactions**

**They'll learn what's it's like to be twins and how to control their powers together**

**Marina will make some new friends**

**AND…**

**Marina's going to get a BOYFRIEND!**


	6. Chapter 5 part 2

**Here's part 2! Enjoy!**

**I do not own PJO or HoO, please rate and REVIEW! No flames please **J

Percy:

All my friends are giggling and smiling until all of a sudden they look stunned. My heart beats out of my chest as I turn around. This isn't the first time I've seen Marina but that was through an Iris Message. Seeing your twin in person is different.

There she is, just standing there next to Chiron. "Campers, meet Marina Jackson, Percy Jackson's twin sister." Chiron says. I can feel everyone's eyes burning holes in my back as I look at Marina.

Her eyes are still trained on the grass below her. She's wearing jeans cutoffs and a blue and white striped T-shirt that has a red heart in the middle. Her jet black hair falls over her face and from what I can see she is very pale. Must be because she's spent a lot of time in a closed palace.

When she looks up I can see her hair is wavy and goes a little past her shoulders and she has front bangs. Her eyes are almost as green as mine and her lips are pretty red.

"You sort of look like Snow White." I say and quickly regret it. Of course I have to say something stupid at a time like this.

"Who?" she replies. Her voice soft and scared.

"You don't know who Snow White is?" Thalia says from behind in a way that sounds like she's about to break out into a fit of laughter. I turn around and give her a _Seriously? _kind of look. She just shrugs "Sorry, but Snow White is a classic."

"Well I guess we have a lot of catching up to do. Everyone to the Big House. Marina follow me and Argus, please bring her stuff to Cabin 3." Chiron commands. Everyone gets up from the porch and walks through the side door of the Big House to take their seats around the table. Ever since we joined with Camp Jupiter we've turned our Ping Pong table to a more formal table and added more chairs to fit everyone.

I fall a little behind so that I am just in front of Marina. As we walk in a hold the door open for her and curtsy like a girl. She gives a shy smile and we both walk through the door and sit side by side.

"Marina, would you please introduce yourself and talk a little bit about living under water?" Chiron asks

"Umm.. Sure.. Well my name is Marina.. Jackson, right?" she asks and looks at me. I nod my head. "Father never called me by my last name so I only learned it a few days ago. Well, living under is different. I haven't had any experience with modern "land" technology since it would not necessarily work under water. I've also never been told any human folk stories or fairy tales, is it called?, only Greek and Roman legends. I still had a tutor and learned things that people of my age would learn but I never had any human friends. Only sea creatures and the occasional conversation with a mer-child was my daily entertainment. So I do apologize if some things that I do seem anti-social or not customary." Marina says and looks around at everyone for the first time.

"That's okay," Annabeth, who is sitting on my right, answers "We understand how hard it's been to be isolated for so many years. We won't judge you. My name is Annabeth by the way." she reaches out her hand and Marina shakes it.

After introducing everyone to Marina and telling her a little bit about both camps and their histories Chiron dismissed everyone. I learned that even though Marina was underwater she took small parts in both wars and was well acquainted with them. She even destroyed Kronos's second Princess Andromeda ship using only her powers.

Chiron took her to see the camp introduction video that every new camper sees and told me that my activates for the day are cancelled so that I could spend time with Marina. I walked back to my cabin even more nervous than before. I guess it's because now I actually get to talk to her unlike before when I only looked at her.

I lie down on my bed and stare at the wooden cabin ceiling. So many thoughts run through my head. How can you possibly fill in fourteen years worth of information in a short amount of time? What it everything becomes really awkward and we won't have anything to say? What if…

I hear the stairs leading into Cabin 3 creak and I sit upright. Marina timidly walks in and stands in the doorway. "Hello" she practically whispers.

"You know, being that we are twins and have the same father, this is your cabin too," I point out "I don't bite unless you ask". She laughs, a real laugh, and heads over to the bed across the room from mine where her belongings were placed and starts rifling through her suitcase.

"I guess so. I don't know why I'm scared really, it's just so intimidating." she lowers her voice to a loud whisper "So many people!"

"Welcome to the real world."

"I know. But it really is weird though, seeing people when all I'm used to seeing every day is sea creatures and mer-people." she turns to look at me "hey, you hungry? I brought six bags of oreos and three jars of peanut butter. Oreos and peanut butter are my favorite snack."

"Mine too!" I exclaim as she walks over to the edge of my bed holding a jumbo pack of Oreos and Jiffy peanut butter. "Mom used to pack Oreos and peanut butter…"

"Every time we'd go on a road trip!" We finish together. We laugh and open up the snacks and begin eating. I guess the rumor about twins talking in perfect synchronization most of the time really is true.

All those doubts about if we'd get along and be able to fit in fourteen years worth of stories in a day just escape my mind. We talk so effortlessly together, mostly about fun experiences over the past few years. We brought up a little bit of conversation about the wars with Kronos and Gaea but didn't spend too much time on that, since a funny story would always pop up in our heads.

Five hours and a jumbo pack of Oreos later Marina suddenly gets quite. "Do you have a girlfriend Percy?" she asks

"Yeah, her name is Annabeth. She's the girl with the curly blonde hair who introduced herself to you first." I reply

"She's really pretty. And she seems like quite the logical person…"

"Unlike me, I know" I laugh "So have you ever had a boyfriend?" Marina just sighs and shakes her head.

"I told you, the only thing I've seen for the past fourteen years that slightly resembles humans are mer-men. And besides, father would have never let me date. It's a little concerning since I'm seventeen years old. I've noticed that most kids our age are already dating."

"That is true, but don't worry, we'll get you a boyfriend in no time." I reply just as the conch horn blows, signaling dinner time. "Come on, it's time for dinner, even though I don't think I can eat anything after inhaling those Oreos." I stand up and reach out my hand. Marina takes it and I pull her up.

She jokingly starts drumming on her stomach. "Tell me, do I look fat?" she giggles.

I stroke my invisible beard and make myself look like one of those people at museums that have to see every single angle of each statue in the exhibits. "Yes" I finally say and make a run for it out the door, stopping a few yards ahead to show her the way to the dining pavilion.

"You're so mean to me!" she fake cries as she finally reaches where I'm standing and punches me in the arm. "I think we're going to get along quite nicely."

**So did you guys like it?**

**Again, PLEASE REVIEW!**

**Next week I'll add more stuff about Marina getting accustomed to being above water and I promise there will be more details about her future boyfriend.**

**By the way, I already know who he is, and you'll probably never guess ;) **


	7. Chapter 6

**I do not own PJO or HoO**

**Please read and REVIEW, no flames **

**FYI- there's one curse word in this chapter so don't freak out ;)**

Marina:

"One, two, three, hit" _Cling. _After countless hours of practicing my sparring with a robot I've already been able to knock down its sword dozens of times.

"I think that's enough with the robots for today. Marina and Percy how about a match between you two?" Chiron declares.

"Fine by me." Percy says and jumps down from the coliseum looking seats in the training arena. Many of Percy's friends, who I guess are sort-of my friends too, are sitting on the edges of the coliseum. It's still so weird fighting on solid ground when most of my life I learned how to stay afloat in the water and simultaneously charge. Never have I actually battled with the laws of gravity in place, and the sensation is very different.

"Get ready," Chiron calls "Begin."

We circle each other for a few seconds. I'm a little nervous since I never paid attention during sword fighting lessons with my tutors. I was much more interested on developing my powers properly. Percy slashes at me, waking me up from my thoughts, and I side-step to parry him, but he expected that move. He pushes my sword away with the hilt of his and my sword clatters to the ground in defeat.

After many more rounds of almost the same thing I begin to get aggravated; he's not even giving me a chance to learn what I'm doing wrong! All of his friends are trying not to laugh at me from the side. I feel like a complete loser. To make matters worse, Percy says

"Not trying to be mean, but I wasn't even trying." I think he meant that to be a joke but he obviously doesn't know me well enough to see that I can be a complete, pardon my language, bitch when I'm insulted.

Something about the way he said that had a small hint of superiority to it. As if showing me that he'll always be the better one. That's when I get really mad. I whip my head around so that I'm facing Chiron.

"Chiron who would you think is the most powerful between the two of us?" I ask

"What sort of a question is this…"

"Who would you think is the most powerful?" I repeat, this time saying it louder so that everyone else turns to look at us. Percy, who is already standing with his friends, looks at Chiron too. I guess he wants to know that too. His friend Travis, I think, pats him on the back as if to quietly say that Percy is the better one.

"Well my dear, according to legends about twins the male tends to be the more dominant one." Chiron explains. Clearly seeing the agitation on my face he adds in a more panicked tone "But remember that you are very powerful as well, that is why you two were split up in the first place…"

But before he could finish I yell at Percy "Why don't we test it out. See who really is the high and mighty one."

"Marina I've had much more experience than you, I've trained longer. Have you even fought in a war?" Percy replies. The competitive edge in his voice is clearly evident.

I guess he doesn't like not being the best.

"Weren't you ever told to never underestimate your opponent?"

"Who says I am?" Silence spread across the training area. The look on Percy's face shows that he might be a little bit sorry but doesn't have the nerve to take it back. The way his friends are looking at him, I guess this isn't how "the" Percy Jackson is supposed to act. His girlfriend, Annabeth, is the only one shaking her head. She probably knows that deep down inside he'll do a lot to defend his honor and position as the camp's leader.

He steps forwards, takes a deep breath and closes his eyes. Suddenly, the five, big water coolers that were placed around the arena explode and come to hover around Percy. With a casual flick of his wrist he sends them hurling at me at over one hundred miles per hour. Being trained by the best aquatic heroes and teachers the ocean has come to know, I already know what to do.

I slow down the water and form a circle with my hands in front of my chest. The water begins to swirl into the circle, forming a medium sized crystal sphere. I delicately hold it on the tips of my fingers and raise an eyebrow at Percy.

Percy:

After I sent tons of water hurling at Marina I was a bit surprised that she slowed it down but I still wasn't impressed when she turned it into a sphere.

"A ball?" I question "Really? I expected a little more out of you."

Just as I start to summon water from the lake, she calmly take the ball in one hand and throws it on the ground.

Out of nowhere the ground starts shaking voilently. My friends are gripping onto anything remotely stable, but when I look around I see that the shaking is only around our little area. Everyone else in the arena is perfectly sound. Fissure breaks through the ground, almost like Nico's when I found out that he was the son of Hades.

But instead of fire coming out of the crack, tentacle shaped water formations ooze out. Marina's eyes shine a bright green which begins to actually swirl with shades of brown and blue. Her eyes begin to look like an aquatic colored vortex. My eyes go back to the water tentacles, start to swirl into the sky, higher and higher, until they just blink out of existence, along with everything else. The ground stops shaking, the water surrounding us disappears, and everyone looks unaffected.

"One, two, three, hit!" I hear Chiron yell from behind me. I turn around confused and see Marina disarming a training robot, just like she did less than fifteen minutes ago. I gawk at her, stunned, and with much admiration.

"You turned back time!" I cry out. My friends look at me as if I'm a lunatic but I don't care. All I can think about is how amazing my sister is. She control water, cause earthquakes and turn back time!

But the look I get from Marina is anything but proud. She has a sad expression in her eyes as if she's done something she wasn't supposed too. Everyone else is looking at us as if we've gone insane, which I'm starting to believe that I really did.

"I can't believe this! I-I-I…" I stammer. All I feel right now is pure shock.

Marina turns back to practice on another one of the robots. Everyone went back to talking and training. Chiron announces the he must return to the big house and gallops off. I'm still standing there, looking like a complete fool, with my eyes wide and my mouth open.

After a minute Marina turns to leave, but throws something in the air when she walks past me. I catch it and open my hands to see that it is a medium sized crystal ball.

I look up at Marina to see her wink at me and walk away. I smile as I walk towards my friends who are getting ready to leave. I throw the sphere in the air and catch it, laughing quietly to myself.

"What's so funny?" Annabeth asks as we hold hands and split apart from the group, heading towards the stables. I hug her to me and put my hand around her waist.

"Thank gods I have a sister." I say. Annabeth gives me an odd look but I just laugh.

I gotta learn how to do that.

**Like it? Tell me what you think!**

**Next chapter I promise that there will be a bit more romance for Marina, I just wanted to show in this chapter how powerful Marina really is.**

**Until next time!**


	8. Chapter 7

**Sorry it took a while to upload, I didn't have school last week so everything went by quicker.**

**I do not own PJO or HoO**

**Please ****review****, NO FLAMES please**

Marina:

"Idiot" I think as I walk away from the training arena. "You just gave away your biggest secret." I keep walking towards cabin 3. I pass the rock wall and stop in my tracks.

"But he's your brother, it's ok." I continue arguing with myself. "Ugh" I groan out loud and continue walking towards my cabin.

I think about what just happened with Percy. Father gave me strict instructions to only use my time lapsing powers in case of an extreme emergency, and I don't classify trying to show up your twin brother an extreme emergency. I shudder at the thought of how angry Father will be. At least no one except Percy remembers.

I re-play the last twenty minutes over and over in my head until something in my memory catches my eye. When Percy and I were battling there was a moment when I ducked under the hilt of his sword as he pushed it toward me. As I tried escaping it a saw a medium shaped heart on the bottom of the hilt. "It looks so familiar" I think. I pull out my lucky necklace, a long chained heart necklace from Tiffany and co. and twirl it around my fingers. Just as I widen my eyes at the realization I hear someone call my name from behind me.

"Marina" I hear and turn around to see a guy run up to me, one of the Stoll twins.

"Connor, right?" I ask as he reaches me

"Yeah," he nods. I get scared at the thought that he's going to mention what happened in the arena but opt out of it as he begins talking again. "With all the craziness that's been happening ever since you came to camp, we never had a chance to be properly acquainted."

"Well that's nice of you." I say as we continue walking. "So, what would you like to share about yourself."

"Gods you sound like a teacher on the first day of school." he jokes and I laugh. "Well I'm 18 years old, about a year older than you, I enjoy pulling pranks on others, my favorite candy is marshmallows, I am artistically challenged, and I have never in my life been on a sports team."

"Great information." I say as we get to my cabin. I look at my cabin half of me wanting to go in but the other half wanting to stay with Connor. "Do you want to go to the archery range. I haven't been there yet."

"Sure, I've got nothing better to do."

"Well aren't you sweet" I roll my eyes "Give me two minutes to change and I'll be right outside." I walk up the stairs leading to my cabin.

"I'll be here… waiting.. All by my lonesome…" Connor says dramatically. I laugh and close the door to my cabin.

As I put away my sword and change to an orange Camp Half Blood tank top instead of the V-neck t-shirt I was wearing, I think about Connor. How his hazel eyes have a mysterious glint to them and how his slightly shaggy dirty blonde hair makes him look boyish and friendly.

The more and more I think about him the cuter I think he is. I feel this weird sensation in the pit of my stomach that slowly works its way up to my heart. I get scared, not knowing what this feeling is. I push it to the side, put on my white converse and head outside.

"Ready?" I ask as Connor finishes tying his shoes.

"Well I was ready two minutes ago but _someone_ decided to leave me outside her cabin all by myself."

"You poor thing. How could you have ever managed that alone? And in broad daylight too!"

He laughs "It was hard, but I overcame it like a big boy." we continue walking toward the archery range in silence. A minute later he says "So how about you? I told you random things about me and now it's your turn."

"Umm ok… Something random… My favorite time of summer is August because I love swimming when it's scorching hot and it's also my birthday, I have 50 sundresses in my father's palace, I have 100 different swim suits as well and I have never watched T.V. Quite frankly I still don't understand how a T.V works."

"You've never watched T.V? How!"

"Well apparently a television is an electrical device and electrical devices don't work under water."

"So what do you do when you're bored?"

"Swim."

"Swim?"

"Yes, swim. My boundaries are from Rhode Island to South Carolina but secretly I've swam all the way up to Maine and two miles before the Sea of Monsters, which is a little south of Florida."

"You swam that far?"

"Yes. Children of Poseidon have the ability to swim great distances in a short amount of time." I say and look around to make sure no one is listening. "Can you keep a secret?"

"Depends on the secret." he responds matter-of-factly and raises his eyebrows.

"Every year during the winter and summer solstice the gods hold an all day council meeting. Those two days are the only days of the year where the gods can't monitor what happens in the mortal world or with their children, since they're too busy. So those two days, ever since I was five years old I swim out to the center of the Atlantic ocean."

"Why?"

"Well, at the center of the Atlantic Ocean there are various portals that take you under Asia, Africa and Europe and to the Mariana Trench."

"And what's so special about the Mariana Trench. Except for it being the deepest part of Earth's oceans."

"Have you ever heard of the Lost City of Atlantis? Well it hides there, at the bottom of the ocean, still bustling with mer-people and ancient sea creatures. It's quite the magnificent sight. That's where I go every year."

Connor stares at me dumbstruck. "It must be great being a child of Poseidon." he murmurs in a sad tone.

I don't respond. We keep walking, a heavy tension in between both of us. I decide to change the subject.

"So, how is it that you don't have a girlfriend and Travis does? And don't give me the "looks" excuse because you guys are identical."

He smiles and pretends to be disappointed, as if he was actually going to say that. We walk past the strawberry fields and I can see the archery range a little ahead of us. "I don't really know. I guess it's because a lot of people say that Travis is the more mature one. I'm classified as the more goofy and childish one, but I brought that upon myself."

"Do you want a girlfriend?" I question second guessing myself. I don't know if I'm asking a bad question or not, I've never actually had this conversation with a real person.

"Just between you and me" he whispers and glances around "Yes. I'm pretty much on the verge of desperation." He laughs and continues "It's a little embarrassing too since the only girlfriend I've ever had was in fifth grade and that was just a joke."

"Well imagine never having a boyfriend, ever. Even as a joke."

"There weren't any date worthy people in the ocean?"

"Nope, only mer-men and trust me, you do not want to date a mer-teen. They're crazy." we arrive at the archery range, and pick up bows and a few arrows, and walk over to two adjoining targets.

"Good to know. Now I'll never make that mistake, thanks to you." Connor answers and puts an arrow in the bow. He aims and shoots, hitting about an inch away from the bulls-eye.

"Nice." I congratulate. "Now one more question."

"Yeah?" he says as he shoots another arrow, this time hitting the outer rim of the red bulls-eye.

I notch an arrow in the bow, aim and say "How do you shoot this thing?"

**What do you guys think?**

**Reviews make me feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside, but not if they're flames **J


	9. Chapter 8

I do not own PJO or HoO

Read and Review, no flames please

**PLEASE READ! **

**I made a mistake, Connor and Travis ****are not ****twins! I recently re-read Sea of Monsters and Percy says that 'one of them is older than the other but he can't remember which'. For this story Connor will be the older one. **

**Enjoy **J

Percy:

Words, so many words.

I've always had nightmares about monsters and titans but never about words. Words swirl around my head as I half consciously try to wake from my sleep, to no prevail. Sentences upon sentences form in my mind, but they are the same sentence over and over. I can't make out the words but I just know they look familiar.

I'm suddenly transported to an underwater city so beautiful that I can hear myself gasp during my sleep, if that's even possible. The city was so grand and magnificent with sea creatures and mer-people. One look at the architecture and I can already tell that it would send Annabeth on a frenzy.

As I look at the mer-people I can hear them whispering and repeating the same sentence over and over again. It sounds like a broken fragment. "On the winding roads far and near, remember the ones that you hold dear… please don't forget me." I hear repeated over and over again.

I know that sentence… From where? Thoughts swirl through my mind as the "dream me" gets sucked into a vortex. I keep swirling around faster and faster, an image of a green eye beginning to form. The eye winks at me and I'm released from my dream, jolting awake.

As I my panicked breathing begins to relax I remember why those words looked so familiar. I quietly pull out Riptide and uncap it, making sure not to wake Marina in the process. I run my hand across the hilt of the sword and see the same words begin to form in the heart that is already permanently engraved on the bottom of my sword.

I suddenly flash back to the day I battled Marina, the day she turned back time. One time, as she tried escaping my sword she ducked down. I can vaguely remember a heart shaped necklace falling out from her shirt, which she tucked back in once her own sword clattered on the dirt.

A hint of sun shines through the small cabin window, illuminating the space between my bed and Marina's. I look over at her, which is a little hard since she's in the dark. She looks so meek sometimes that I can't even believe we're related. She's about half a foot shorter than me and not as strong. I'm very tan from hours of training in the sun and swimming in the lake while she's pasty white. Many of our features are different; different lips, noses, facial expressions. We hardly look alike.

Her eyes suddenly open, faintly startling me. She looks like the Cheshire Cat, only with her eyes instead of her smile. I can't help but smile as I look at her alarming, jade green eyes.

"Good morning Fish Face." Marina yawns. Still in the dark, she briefly closes her eyes and smiles, showing her bright white teeth. She then sits up and does a "cat like" stretch. Creepy…

I laugh "I should get dressed, Chiron wants to meet at the Big House at 6:40 and it's already 6:15."

"Ok, just give me 5 minutes to take a shower" She says as she runs up to grab a towel "I need my morning water." she runs to the shower and quietly closes the door.

I can hear water running and after two minutes, I begin to see steam coming from under the door. The steam begins to swirl around the room, making the Poseidon Cabin feel more and more like the ocean. The mist swirls across the dark, wood floor and up the walls made out of mounds of rock. Even though Marina is showering in fresh water, the smell of salt in prominent in the air. I inhale deeply, relaxing my shoulders as I exhale out.

Marina comes out of the shower wrapped in a white towel. "Your turn"

Fifteen Minutes Later

Marina and I are halfway to the Big House, walking in silence. Camp looks so strange when everyone is asleep. I'm so used to walking out of my cabin and having my eyes and ears bombarded by the blazing sun and various noises, but at 6:35 in the morning everything is so peaceful. All the cabins filled with tired campers trying to salvage their last 40 minutes of sleep before they're woken up by the conch horn or a head counselor.

We enter the Big House and almost everyone is there.

"Why is Marina here?" Clarisse questions, the hate clearly evident in her tone. For some reason she hates Marina worse than she hates me. No one knows why.

"To collect some files from Chiron." Marina replies calmly, sounding as if she's trying to be the better person. Only I know that she's really doing it to prevent from snapping Clarisse's neck and turning back time so that she could do it over and over again.

Marina walks over to the file cabinet on the other side of the room as I take a seat next to Annabeth. I can see Clarisse subtly stick her foot out but Marina casually steps over it, as if it were never there.

Sitting across from me, I can see Connor's eyes follow Marina as she takes out some files. When he instinctively looks around to make sure no one saw, I exchange a look with Travis and we both wiggle our eyebrows at him. Clearly showing that he's trying to be the older one of the two **(A/N because Connor and Travis aren't twins, it says so in SoM)** Connor sits back and manages to look unfazed.

Chiron rolls his wheelchair into the room just as Marina opens the door to leave. "Hello child," he exclaims "Do stay for our meeting this morning if you wish."

Marina turns back to look at me and I nod my head and give her a _you-don't-need-my-permission_ look. She timidly walks over to the table and takes a seat at the edge, in between Will Solace and Katy Gardner. Katy and Marina smile at each other but Marina puts her head down quickly. She's still shy sometimes and doubts her social abilities.

After a long talk about today's activities and some new camp rules that had been enforced by the gods, Chiron adjourns the meeting. A few people go to their cabins only to leave me, Annabeth, Marina, Leo, Piper, Connor, Travis and Jason. Since the conch horn didn't blow yet, we all just sat there and talked.

"I know this is random but I really like your necklace Marina." Piper says

Marina stops running the heart pendant along the chain and looks up. "Oh, thank you. I've had this necklace for a while now. It was a gift from my father."

"Does it turn into a weapon like Thalia's bracelet or Percy's pen?" Jason asks

"I wish" She laughs for the first time in public. Annabeth and I side glance at each other smiling.

I suddenly remember the dream I had. It's a long shot that her necklace will have anything to do with my sword but maybe, just maybe…

"Marina, can I see your necklace?" I blurt out stopping her explanation on how her necklace is from Tiffany and co. even though she lives underwater.

"Why?" she responds wearily.

"Can I just… please?"

"Fine but don't damage it." She takes off the long necklace in a steady motion, fixing her hair over her shoulder in the process.

I take the necklace in both hands running my thumb over the smooth, silver surface. When nothing happens I try again.

"How… What.. H-h-how…" Marina stammers looking appalled. After a long time of looking shocked she comes over to my chair. "Move over" she says and split's the chair with me.

Marina takes the necklace in the palm of her hand and runs her thumb across the surface, just like I attempted doing to no prevail. Immediately, words begin to shimmer on the heart in cursive letters.

"Through the places you'll go, and people you might see, of you I beg…" she begins

"Go on…" I encourage

"That's it, that's all there is. How do you know about this anyway?"

I uncap Riptide and show her the heart engraving. I swipe my finger along the heart and the words that I usually have appear. We put the necklace and the sword next to each other to compare the sizes.

"Same size." We both gasp at the same time.

"Oh come on, are you two really starting to talk at the same time?" Leo cries "Isn't that a bit cliché?"

We ignore him and continue to stare at the two objects in front of us. Even though the hilt of the celestial bronze sword is made from a dark, brown material, the heart looks as if it's made of silver. Both object begin to shimmer and I swear I can feel a small tug pulling my sword towards the necklace. Slowly Marina places the necklace in the cut out heart shape on Riptide.

When they click a sudden burst of light blooms from the two objects and then subsides. The necklace pops out of the sword and returns to Marina's hand. I look at my sword and notice that now full sentences have formed inside the heart. We begin to read in unison

"On the winding roads far and near remember the ones that you hold dear. Through the places you'll go, and people you might see, of you I beg.. please don't forget me."

As we finish reading I look at my twin. This girl who I thought was so different from me thirty minutes ago now feels closer than ever. Instead of noticing our differences, I now begin to see our similarities. Our eyes and hair are the same color, we have a tendency to fight for what we believe is right, and we can be way to proud of ourselves sometimes.

Now that I think about it, maybe we're not so different at all.


	10. Chapter 9

**Hello **J** How was Thanksgiving break? **J

**Anyway here's my next chapter**

**No flames please, READ AND REVIEW!**

Marina:

Sitting and staring at water isn't all it's made up to be. You'd think that by sitting on the sand and distantly gazing at water would calm you down, just like a character in a book or movie. It feels like I've been sitting here forever. But when I look at my watch it's only been fifteen minutes.

"Well that was helpful." I murmur and stand up. As I wipe sand off my shorts I decide to take a walk around camp.

I don't even know why I was sitting down in the first place, I guess I just feel a little jumpy and frantic these days. Why? I have no idea. But as I walk towards the strawberry fields I understand why. I'm bored.

Sure I train and fight and train some more but that's all I do. I the only time I've ever had a serious conversation with someone was with Connor and that was, what, two weeks ago? Even my own brother can't have a conversation with me that lasts for more than 7 minutes, I know because I count. And yes I have talked to a few of Percy's friends but that's just it. They're PERCY'S friends, not mine.

I'm already at the basketball court and I see Connor finishing up a one-on-one game with one of his half brothers. They say goodbye to each other and Connor turns around.

"Hey." he says

I'm so shocked that he's talking to me that it takes me a few seconds to answer "Uh, hello."

What follows that is an awkward silence as Connor bends down to tie his shoes and I stare at him like an idiot. I quickly say the first thing I can think of "You're pretty good at making goals."

_Shit. They're calling shots not goals! _I'm internally beat myself up while Connor just laughs. "You mean shots right?" he asks.

"Yeah, shots. That's what I meant. I'm not that good with baseball- I mean football- I mean basketball."

Connor laughs again and I turn a bit pink. _Gods why am I acting like such an idiot._

"It looks like you want to turn back time and get a do-over, don't you?" he says. I begin to panic, how does he know! After a few seconds he adds with a snort "Too bad that's not possible. That would be pretty damn cool."

Pretty damn cool… I'm probably going to regret this…

"Actually it is." I spill out getting his attention. He looks at me with his mesmerizing hazel eyes and all I can do it try to keep from falling.

"What?"

"I'm only telling you this because I trust you ok? Whatever happens you NEVER repeat to anyone, not even Travis." I take a deep breath. I don't know why I'm trusting him with this, after all he is a son of Hermes. But something in my gut tells me that he's trustworthy… I hope.

I feel a familiar tug in my stomach and suddenly the floor begins to crack. I giant fissure forms spreading all the way from the archery range, through the basketball court and almost to the strawberry field. Campers begin screaming and taking out their swords, preparing for a fight.

"What are you doing?" Connor yells at me over the noise. I don't answer, all I do is look into his eyes.

Suddenly, a flash appears and I am standing on the side of the basketball court.

"See ya later Con." one of the Hermes boys says and walks away from the center of the court.

"Uh.. Bye?" Connor replies. He turns to look at me and the expression is placid. But to me that's like saying I'm a monster.

I begin to breath erratically. "You're good at scoring shots" I say quivering and begin to back up. I turn on my heels and start quickly walk away but I hear a laugh. Connor's laugh!

"Nice." he says impressed. I stop and turn around, trying to calm my breathing.

"Seriously?"

"Well the earthquake scared the crap out of me but that was probably one of the coolest things I've ever seen" he catches up to me and we walk side by side "And no one remember except us?"

"Yepp" I whisper "Our not so little secret." we continue walking in silence. I try to rack my brain for something but I'm speechless. That feeling that I felt a few weeks ago, the one that works its way up to my heart, is back.

I decide to look at the clear blue sky in front of me. Not one cloud is in sight permitting you to practically see for miles across the horizon. As I finish admiring the sun, I see a boy and girl sitting on a bench. The boy has his arm around the girl's shoulders and she's resting her head in the crook of his neck. I can't help but feel envious of the two as the boy slowly leans in for a kiss.

I look away to give them some privacy and see Connor deep in thought. "You ok?" I ask

He opens his mouth but no sound comes out. He tries a few more times, probably thinking of what to say. Finally he stutters "T-that question you asked me, about relationships, it's been bothering me."

I start to laugh but the look on his face is too serious. "Oh, not funny. Sorry" I apologize "But seriously we talked about this two weeks ago and it's bothering you _now_?"

"Well, Travis has been hanging around Katie a lot these days. And I can't hang out with most of the other head counselors because they're with their boyfriends of girlfriends too. Except Leo, but he just busy flirting."

"So you've been getting lonely?" I ask skeptically

He sighs in sort-of a frustrated way "No it's not that, it's just… With everyone being a couple these days it makes me want to have a girlfriend. But thinking back on the conversation we had a while ago I'm starting to realize that there's this girl that I wish was my girlfriend. I just don't know howto ask her."

"And you're asking _me_ for advice?"

"Of a sort."

"Okay…" I exhale "What do you know about her?"

There was a very long pause after that. _He's probably thinking about something good to use. That means she's important to him. _We pass the volleyball court where a few Roman daughters of Mars challenged Greek daughters of Ares in a match. The ball is going back and forth between the two groups so fast that it's giving me a headache.

Just then Connor clears his throat and begins to talk quickly in a soft voice. "Her favorite time of summer is August because she loves swimming when it's scorching hot and because it's her birthday too. She has 50 sundresses, 100 different swim suits and still doesn't understand how to use the T.V. because apparently it doesn't work where she used to live…"

I stop walking and look at some far away trees, trying to calm myself down from his recent confession. From my peripheral vision I can see that he stopped too and is looking at me expectantly. _I could sure use that sitting by the lake time right now._

I exhale for a few seconds "Gee, well she sounds familiar". I turn and look him straight in to his eyes. "I don't know how to do this relationship thing. For gods' sake I've been isolated underwater for fourteen years of my life."

We stare at each other for a moment, his face become sadder by the second. He looks heartbroken and disappointed even though I didn't even say a proper "yes" or "no". We continue walking and reach my cabin.

"So that's a no?" Connor says, trying to mask his disappointment. I begin walking up the steps into my cabin.

"Yes."

"Yes that's a no?"

I laugh and turn at the door to look at him. "Yes that's a yes."

"Really?" he laughs with me, the joy in his voice prominent.

"Really! Now go spread it like wildfire, I expect to be the hot topic by dinner."


	11. Chapter 10

**Hey guys! I'm soooooo sorry I didn't update last week, I was really busy.**

**Please read and ****review**

**I do not own PJO or HoO.**

Marina:

There are many things that I can conclude from my 17 years of life. I learned that "nobody's perfect and I've gotta work it", that "life is like a box of chocolate", and to never play hide and seek with a flatfish because they keep camouflaging with the ocean floor.

But another thing I learned is that each day is a puzzle. You start off in the morning with all of your pieces scattered around the floor, and slowly as the day progresses you find the matching pieces. But whether the puzzle makes sense or not is up to you.

Ever since Connor and I started dating my daily puzzles have been making a little bit more sense. I'm starting to fit in more now that I have a cute boyfriend. And he makes me happy just by smiling at me. But somehow the puzzle is still a bit off. Don't get me wrong, the pieces are all there at the end of the day but the image they form is blurry.

A conch horn blows in the distance signaling everyone for breakfast. Percy and I walk out of the cabin and join the procession of demi-gods to the dining pavilion. I catch a glimpse of Connor leading his cabin to breakfast along with his brother Travis. We lock eyes for a second and he winks at me, making me feel that pinch-y feeling in my heart that I always get every time I see him.

"You really like him don't you" Percy asks. It take me a moment to focus on what he's saying because I'm distracted by Connor.

"Yes.. I do." I reply quietly. Percy and I have never really talked about Connor. By this time we're sitting across from one another at the Poseidon table.

Percy sighs and looks me in the eyes "I love Connor like an annoying brother but he can be up to no good sometimes. He can be reckless, and arrogant, and scheming…"

"And nice, and sweet and caring." I interrupt a little agitated.

"Look Marina I just don't want you to be with the wrong kind of guy."

"So what? Connor is the wrong kind of guy?"

"No.. I mean… you know.. I'm not sure Marina." we sit there in silence and eat our pancakes. I make sure to leave one as an offering to the gods.

I get up to place it in the hearth. On my way to the center of the room I look over at the Athena/ Minerva table. I see Annabeth smiling as if one of her cabin mates told a funny joke. She's so perfect. Beautiful blonde curls, gorgeous eyes and an athletic body. She's wise and cunning and compassionate and just.. Perfect.

I place a pancake in the hearth and offer it to whichever god feels like accepting it. As I walk back to the table I can feel two of my puzzle pieces breaking apart, one of them returning to the jumble of other pieces.

"Sorry I can't be as perfect as you or Annabeth" I bitterly add as I sit down. We stay silent for a while more. It looks like he's trying to say something but can't form the right words. At the end of breakfast we walk out separately from the dining pavilion. Percy goes to Annabeth but I can see him hesitantly interlock fingers with her. I keep walking until I can't see them anymore.

"Well someone's a fast walker." Someone whispers in my ear and I jump. I hear a familiar laugh behind me and I know that it's just Connor.

"Hey." I says as I hug him. As we break our embrace I can seem his expression change into a little bit of nervousness.

"I was wondering.. Well.. I want to know if you would like to go on a date with me?"

"Sure" I smile "But how do you go on a date in camp?"

"Trust me, it's possible. I'll come by your cabin at 8:00?"

"Sounds great."

"See you later." Connor says and starts to walk away but not before giving me a small peck on the cheek. I slightly blush and go to the training arena to practice.

333

All I could think about for the rest of the day was what could possible happen on our date. Where will it be? What will we do? Is there a chance he'll kiss me? No, probably not.

Everything passes by so slowly. Lunch feels like hours and dinner is an eternity, especially because all I ate was a small salad. I didn't have to deal with Percy during dinner since all the head counselors were eating at the Big House during their daily meeting. But that also meant I couldn't see Connor. At 6:00 I finally return to my cabin and start getting ready.

I take a long shower and dry my hair using my powers, making it seamless and flowing. I paint my nails red and add a sea-star design on each ring finger. I go to my closet and pick out the perfect outfit, since there's only two people in our cabin I have my own. After twenty minutes of hard deliberation and trying on several dresses I pick a white lace dress that falls just below my knees.

I adorn my dress with a thin, navy blue belt and a matching pair of navy blue wedges with a white rim at the top. I wear my lucky Tiffany & co. heart necklace with the engraved quote on it. Just as I start putting on my makeup Percy walks through the door. When he sees what I'm wearing he raises and eyebrow and sits on his bed with a sigh.

"You look like a dressed up female version of a sailor." Percy finally says. I smile momentarily but then remember that I'm mad at him. After another minute of silence Percy asks.

"Are you going out with Connor tonight?"

"Yepp.." more silence.

"Look what I said today was uncalled for. I know Connor is a really nice guy but I'm just a little scared. You're my sister, I don't want you to feel upset or heartbroken." He explains while twirling the end of his shirt between his fingers. "And plus, since we have twin telepathy powers, whenever you're in pain so am I."

At this I smile, remembering how when we were younger we tried to convince mom that we could communicate telepathically. We'd sit in our shared room and plan out things we can do that would make it look like we could read each other's minds. Mom would always applaud and act like she believes us, giving us the greatest feeling of satisfaction.

I walk over to Percy and sit on the edge of his bed. "I'm nervous too, I've never had some who likes me before. And I know that it's hard for you to see me date someone who has a reputation for being one of the biggest trouble makers in camp but I promise you that he's very sweet."

Percy sits up and hugs me. "But you promise that if anything bad happens you'll tell me?"

"Of course." Then there's a knock on the cabin door. I get up and head towards the door but a second before I open it I add "How do you think I feel every time I see you making out with Annabeth?"

As I get outside and close the door behind me I can hear Percy laugh. I turn around to see Connor in a polo shirt that is a light shade of yellow. It perfectly compliments the dirty blonde highlights in his light brown hair. He takes my hand and kisses it in a comedic gesture and says "My lady."

He takes my hand and we walk in the direction of the strawberry fields. I take a moment to marvel at the camp's beauty during the night. Small lights cover the trees in festive orange and purple colors, symbolizing the merge of Camp Jupiter and Camp Half Blood. The strawberries have a light coat of shimmering dew over them as they sit patiently waiting for the Demeter cabin to tend to them.

Once we get to the strawberry fields we keep walking, still hand in hand.

"You look amazing." I hear Connor says in almost a whisper.

"Thank you" I reply, "you look dashing yourself."

He laughs and we continue walking. We talk about sword training for an extensive amount of time. Suddenly we get to the most magnificent place I've ever seen.

It's a circle shaped patch of freshly blooming cherry blossom trees, even though they are not in season. The smell of the beautiful pink and white flowers is better than any synthetic perfume from a store.

"Come on." Connor says and leads me to the center of the patch. A red and white checkered picnic blanket and a whicker basket sit in the middle of the cherry blossom trees, completely concealed from the outside.

Connor and I sit down side by side and he takes out food from the basket: neatly wrapped cucumber sandwiches, a cherry pie and of course, diet cokes. We both open our Cokes at the same time and clink them together.

Then we just sit there and talk about things other than camp. I ask him about his school and his mom and he asks me about living underwater. After a while of that he offers to tell me jokes. I honestly think I have never laughed quite so hard in my life.

Who-knows-how-much-time-later we finish all of the sandwiches and some of the pie. We become quiet for a few minutes but it's not awkward, it's a beautiful calming kind of silence. I look at my watch and see that it's already past midnight. Connor and I then pack up and quietly return to our cabins.

333

As we near my cabin I see that the lights are off. We walk up the stairs and I can even hear Percy slightly snoring like he always does when he's in a deep sleep. I turn with my back to the door to Connor.

"I had an amazing time" I say

"Me too, I'm so glad we did this."

"I know. We should do it again some time." we both smile. I wrap my arms around his neck and hug him for a while.

As I slightly release the hug, our arms still around each other, our faces are merely an inch or two apart. I can see the light freckles he has on his nose and on his cheeks. His eyes are a mesmerizing shade of hazel, just calling to be looked at. My heart starts beating faster and louder, almost knowing what will come next before my brain does.

Connor slowly begins to lean in and closes his eyes and without thinking I do the same. And then it just happens. Our lips slightly touch as I grasp that this is my first kiss. His lips are soft and he's so gentle when kissing me. My brain goes numb and I feel as if I'm floating. I hug him closer and slightly deepen the kiss, making it more passionate but without overdoing it.

I don't know how much time our kiss was but when we pull back we're in desperate need of air. We smile at each other and I feel as if I'm a girl in a movie. I turn around to quietly open the door but not before I steal a peck on his lips.

"Good night." I whisper

"Good night. Sweet dreams." he answers and walks to his cabin, looking back several times.

I tip toe into my cabin, taking off my wedges once I come through the door. The floor creaks a few times as I walk across it but I know that Percy is a heavy sleeper and won't wake up. I change into some comfortable pajama pants and a t-shirt and get in bed.

I lie awake thinking about tonight: the cherry blossom trees, the picnic and the kiss. I feel elated ecstatic! I take a deep breath in an attempt to relax and turn on my side to look at Percy. He looks so calm and peaceful, like a little boy. I think about what has happened ever since I came to camp a little more than two months ago. Boy how my life has changed.

I found my best friend, also known as my twin brother. He introduced me to his friends which when I think about, are now my friends too. I learned how to use my powers on land as well as sword fighting on land. I found a guy who likes me, went on a date with him and actually had my first kiss! I escaped from the confines of the ocean and learned to live above land.

As I continue thinking, more and more things are added to my list. I watched T.V for the first time, ate a marshmallow.

And as I close my eyes and drift to sleep I feel the last puzzle piece click in, forming a clear picture of a heart.


End file.
